This invention pertains to a method of reducing atmospheric contamination by particulate handling processes.
In one of its more specific aspects, this invention relates to a method of reducing emissions of gaseous and particulate matter from pellet forming operations.
In many processes, it is customary to charge particulate matter to a furnace wherein the particulate matter is melted and then further processed. In such processes, it is advantageous to preheat the charge, but its particulate nature makes such preheating difficult. It has, therefore, been found advantageous to form pellets of the particulates and preheat the pellets prior to their introduction into the furnace. While such a procedure results in a considerable reduction in particulate emissions to the atmosphere, attrition of the pellets can still result in dust and chemicals being emitted in undesirable quantities.
There now has been developed a process by means of which not only are dust emissions significantly reduced, but a significant proportion of the chemical constituents of the particulate matter is also reclaimed.
While the process of this invention will be described in terms of pelleting and preheating batch materials for charging to furnaces which melt batch for the subsequent production of glass fibers, the invention is applicable to any pelleting and pelleting preheating system in which hot gases, from any source, are passed in heat exchange with the pellets.